50 schoolchildren, villagers travel 70 km to demand better road in MP's Betul

About 50 schoolchildren, their parents and residents of Chopna village travelled around 70 km to the Betul district collectorate on Tuesday to protest the poor condition of a key unpaved road.

The protesters said the 1.8-km road connecting Lakhipur village to Jholi-1 in the Chopna Rehabilitation Area has remained unpaved for years and becomes muddy and difficult to use during the monsoon.

The road is the main route to and from Chopna for thousands of residents of around 14 villages, including Chikhalpati, Lakhipur and Jholi-1. Schoolchildren also use it to commute to classes.

Poor road affects attendance

The students and villagers arrived at the collectorate in private vehicles and staged a protest outside the district magistrate's office for around an hour.

Betul Collector Saurabh Sonawane later called some students and villagers into his chamber and heard their concerns. He assured them that the issue would be resolved soon.

Chandana Mistry, one of the protesting students, said the road becomes muddy during the rains and makes the journey to school difficult.

She said the problem has continued for a long time and that many children are unable to attend school because of the road's condition.

Another student, Kiran, said children frequently fall while travelling to school. She also alleged that several girls had suffered broken limbs and that books often get wet during the journey.

"Many times, we are denied entry into the school as we end up arriving late," she said.

Collector calls protest inappropriate

Sonawane, however, described the students' method of protest as "inappropriate" and said it appeared to have been influenced by current social media trends.

He said the administration was already aware of the road issue and that the students themselves acknowledged that the protest had been organised in the context of current social media trends.

The collector said mobilising children to highlight the issue in this manner was inappropriate and could also affect their safety.

He said the issue could be resolved through discussions and that people had several avenues to approach the administration with their concerns.

Villagers say complaints have not helped

Laxman Haldar, a resident, said villagers had repeatedly raised the road issue but no solution had been found.

"There is an alternative route, but it requires crossing a river, which can be risky and increases the distance by 10 kilometres," he said.

The protesters are seeking urgent improvement of the 1.8-km road, which they say is particularly difficult to use during the monsoon.